12-12-2025 — Xmas cost
Howdy all. So today should have been a non-Xmas anxiety day. Yeah, right. Started decently — actually it hasn’t been that bad. I got up easily after getting a few hours of sleep overnight. And was the grocery store by 7:15. I almost thought they weren’t open. Only one car in the “customer” lot area. Then I saw 8 or 10 cars in the employee area.
This was my first grocery run since 11/19 (22 days). Spent a little more on meat and eggs and cheese and mushrooms, than I expected. I did get a few other items too. Figures though, by the time I get to the cashier line, there are 4 people in front of me. Where did they come from?
The weather was cold, but at least the winds were under 10 mph. And no snowing. Winds and Snow are coming back in quantity this weekend.
And I guess the humidity outside (and thus, inside) is low. I got zapped a couple of times today. I put new wick/filters into the downstairs humidifiers and upped their speed. Ecobee thermostats say humidity is down to 34% down here. Still a decent 47% upstairs. Hmm, Alexa says humidity outside is a nice 50% with a temperature of 30 degrees. I must be using the heat too much.
Anyhow, one of those zaps came when I opened the door when the USPS person knocked (different gal from yesterday). This time it was a “postage due” on an incoming Xmas envelope.
Some older friends sent a “needs extra postage” card to me, that while in a normal length/width envelope, was wider than expected. $5.96 postage due. They had put two first class stamps on it. I’d never have guessed that card would cost $7.50 to mail.
I just read up on how the USPS determines the amount of postage due on an envelope. Seems they take the difference of postage used, from what it would have been if the proper amount was on it, after rounding dimensions and weight upward. And to that they add a “handling fee”.
I think this card got flagged as being more than the 1/4 inch thick. It was closer to 3/8 inch. It didn’t exceed the maximum size of 11 1/2 by 6 /12, and the weight didn’t seem more than the 3.5 ounces. Ah, it could have been considered “unmachineable” because it was thicker on one side than the other. It was certainly crushed by something — like the rollers on a machine.
Seems like just another reason to go with simple cards next year. And thus, not get annoyed at Xmas, and Enjoy Life